Departmental Newsletter for Modern Languages & Literatures at the College of William & Mary
The purpose of COLL 300 is to connect you with people, places, and ideas that take you out of familiar surroundings and deepen the way you see yourself in the world. To introduce you to people and ideas that are outside your sphere of direct experience. To challenge your ways of thinking. To make you… Read More
The Search for Soviet Jazz Kary Stevick (International Relations, ’20) link to film This past summer I had the amazing opportunity to not only visit and study in St. Petersburg, Russia for six weeks as part of the Reves Center’s study abroad summer program, but also conduct research regarding one of my favorite things—jazz. Initially,… Read More
Environmentalism in St. Petersburg Melanie Carter (Interdisciplinary Studies, ’19) link to film This past summer I spent six weeks in St. Petersburg, Russia as part of the Reves Center’s study abroad program. Beyond the typical language immersion, classroom experience, homestay accommodation, and cultural excursions, we conducted a research project in collaboration with Russian students from… Read More
The Politics of Soviet Cuisine Arianna Afsari (Russian and Hispanic Studies, ’19) link to film Gastronomy is one of the most significant qualities that defines culture, for it possesses the power to narrate the history, and even the politics, of those who eat it. Given that nutrition is such an ordinary part of quotidian life,… Read More
On the Trading Floor in Tokyo Xinyi Wang (Finance and Applied Math, ’18)) One of our students, Ms. Xinyi Wang, experienced an in-depth 10-week internship program at Morgan Stanley’s Institutional Equity Division in Tokyo this summer. She received the internship opportunity from Boston Career Forum, which provides an annual opportunity in Boston every November for… Read More
Once Upon a Time in Japan Yunjie Zhang (International Relations and Global Studies ’20) Yunjie Zhang is a very active participant in the Japanese Culture Association and in the Japanese Language House, where he resides on the William and Mary Campus. He has been taking several high level Japanese language courses, ranging from the… Read More
Teaching the Art of Ikebana at W&M Kado (華道) Demonstration Impressed Attendees with “…the Beauty of Simplicity.” On Wednesday, November 29th, from 5 to 6 pm in the Japanese house, Kado Instructor, Ryoko Vogel from Okinawa, Japan presented a hands-on exploration of what she has been teaching for 6 years─ the intricacies of Ikebana. Ikebana… Read More
Contextualizing Family History Jacopo Gliozzi (Physics and Mathematics, ’19) Fascism is a word that we hear a lot in today’s climate. Especially on a politically conscious campus like William and Mary, the label of Fascist is applied often enough that it’s hard to keep track of what the word means exactly. That’s why, when… Read More
Summer Internship in Pavia Tyler Mlakar (International Relations,’19) Perhaps one of the most stressful tasks that students face during their time at the College of William and Mary is the search for summer internships. Summer internships are of major importance for both graduate school applications and post-graduation job opportunities. Students are always trying to… Read More
Experiences in Granada, Spain Julie Luecke (French and Francophone Studies, ’20) In 2014, I spent three days in Granada, Spain, with a family I had known growing up. I distinctly remember walking around the fountain at los Reyes Católicos, the main square in Granada, with braids in my hair but not a single Spanish… Read More
Hispanic Studies Students Meet Pulitzer Center Grantee Journalist –This collaborative article was authored by the Hispanic Studies 208 students in Cate-Arries’ class. As part of a class unit on investigative journalism, immigration, and refugees in the Spanish-speaking world, students in Professor Cate-Arries Fall 2017 Hispanic Studies 208 course met with the award-winning freelance… Read More
Threads of Identity Emma Russell (Government and Global Studies, ’19) I spent the summer 2017 studying Arabic at the Qasid Institute in Amman, Jordan and volunteered 20 hours a week as a research assistant at “Tiraz Widad Kawar; Home for Arab Dress”. Widad Kawar, the owner of the museum collection, began preserving dresses when she… Read More
Experiencing China Sophia Wischnewski (Chinese Studies, ’20) The Journey Begins My experience traveling along the journey piqued my curiosity about the new world I was soon to encounter. From the time I was enrolled in a Chinese immersion program at 10 years old, I could only dream of visiting one of the world’s most… Read More
Working with Refugees in Vienna Kathryn Eckler (Religious Studies, Minor in Biology, ’19) The past year has been a profound international adventure. In February, I was presented with the opportunity of serving as an intern with an international Baptist Church in Vienna, Austria. Projekt: Gemeinde is a Baptist Church that serves Middle-Eastern Refugees,… Read More
Working on a Sustainable Farm in Swabia Sebastian Viscuso (German Studies and International Relations ’19) In planning my study abroad, I wanted to have as many new experiences with the German language as possible. Since my study abroad ended after only 6 weeks, I decided to investigate other options for either studying or working while… Read More
Editing a Criminal Law and Policy Journal in D.C. Zarine Kharazian (Government and French and Francophone Studies, ’17) Zarine Kharazian currently works as a legal assistant at the Washington, DC law firm of Berliner, Corcoran, and Rowe. Part of her job is to serve as assistant editor of International Enforcement Law Reporter, a monthly… Read More
In this video, Prof. Michael Leruth talks to us about his latest book Fred Forest’s Utopia: Media Art and Activism published, this year by MIT Press. As mentioned on the MIT Press webpage, Prof. Leruth “shows that Forest chooses alternative platforms (newspapers, mock commercial ventures, video-based interactive social interventions, media hacks and hybrids, and, more recently, the… Read More
Welcome to our new Faculty member, Brett Brehm, Assistant Professor of French and Francophone Studies with a specialization in 19th Century French Studies. His current research focuses on the history of color photography and its connections with literature and the visual arts. Brett is also working on a book project, “Kaleidophonic Modernity: Sound, City and Technology.” For… Read More
I am very pleased to introduce an exciting new addition to our staff this year, Dr. Huang-wen Lai. He has a remarkable background, having taught courses on Japanese language, literature, culture and film at the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. In addition, he is… Read More
New Faculty Profile: Michael Hill, Chinese Studies Nicole Cook (International Relations and Chinese, 18’) Welcome to William and Mary! Now that you’ve been in Williamsburg for a few months, how has your time been so far? I’ve been having a great time! I have two really excellent classes this semester, a senior seminar and… Read More
In the run-up to Chinese New Year, producers and reporters from Chinese Central Television came to William and Mary to report on New Year’s festivities celebrated by WM students. The students displayed their impressive language skills, practiced calligraphy, wore traditional Chinese outfits, and even sang in Chinese! The reports were aired on the news program “Morning News” (Zhaowen tianxia) on CCTV… Read More
by Emily Wilcox The W&M 2012 graduating class boasted a stellar group of seniors in the Chinese Program. Three students received High Honors for senior honors thesis projects advised by Chinese Program faculty, and more than eighty-five percent studied abroad in China at least once as part of their undergraduate experience. Students double-majored in… Read More
Sarah Salino, who designed her own major at the College and will graduate with Honors Sunday, May 13, has been awarded a Fulbright in Germany for the academic year 2012-2013. Although she has not yet been placed yet, Sarah will be teaching at a Gymnasium, working with students and other teachers and providing curricular support… Read More
German Studies and Psychology Major Grace Brennan (’12) has received a Fulbright Teaching Assistantship to Berlin for the academic year 2012-2013. Brennan is one of two Fulbrights to Germany this year. Grace is also being inducted into Phi Beta Kappa on Friday, May 11, as a result of her stunning academic achievements at the College… Read More
Rob Leventhal, Associate Professor of German Studies, has received the 2011-2012 PBK John D. Rockefeller Award for the Advancement of Scholarship. The award is given to a faculty member who has excelled in research and scholarship and made a substantial contribution to his or her field. The award was celebrated at the annual PBK Award… Read More
Professor Regina Root’s book Couture and Consensus: Fashion and Politics in Postcolonial Argentina was recently awarded the Middle Atlantic Council of Latin American Studies 2012 Arthur P. Whitaker Book Prize at American University. Professor Root’s book, which explores the interaction of power, identity and fashion in post-colonial Argentina. Editorial Edhasa will publish the Spanish translation later this year. John Incledon… Read More
Garage/Psychedelic Rock band The Suzan, from Tokyo by way of New York, will be performing on Saturday night, February 18, as part of the Global Film Festival. Come meet and chat with the band before the show, at a special coffee hour. 1:30 to 4:00 in Washington 315. It’ll be a unique opportunity to talk… Read More
The theme of this year’s Global Film Festival is Film and the City, and the Pre-Festival series kicks off Wednesday night with a award-winning animated feature from Japan, directed by American Michael Arias: Tekkon Kinkreet (Tekkon Kinkurīto, 2006). Two young brothers, Black and White, roam through the streets and soar across the canopy of the… Read More
Lauren Shaw has been going places lately– Slovenia, the Baltic States, Carinthia/Austria — and returning to the DC area. After finishing a two-year Fulbright ETA in Austria, Lauren (German Studies, ’09) has returned to the United States and taken a job at the German Historical Institute in Washington, D.C. as a paid research assistant. At… Read More
Graduating senior and Phi Beta Kappa initiate Monica LoBue (German Studies and Biology, ’11) has been awarded the Fulbright Teaching Assistantship to Germany for the academic year 2011–2012. This much sought after Fulbright provides Monica with round-trip airfare to Germany and a substantial monthly stipend to work with students learning English and American Studies at… Read More
The German Studies Section of the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures is extremely pleased to announce that graduating senior Ariana Berger (German Studies and Business, ’11) has been awarded The Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange (CBYX) full-year work-study scholarship for Young Professionals in Germany for 2011-2012. This full-year scholarship will provide Ariana with round-trip airfare, two… Read More
Roundtable discussion The Arab world revolutions and uprising: from the personal to the politicalrevolutions in arab world rountable discussion The revolutions, uprisings, and rebellions which have convulsed the Arab world have transfixed the world. Please join us for a discussion of these events from the perspective of citizens from countries which have witnessed or are… Read More
The international symposium “Post-Soviet Television: Global Formats and Russian Power” aims to offer a survey and a critical, reflective assessment of new approaches to the study of television in post-Soviet Russia. During the 1990s Russian television experimented with the new formats and modes of production (private, public, foundation-sponsored, joint-stock company). By the beginning of the… Read More
Feb 24-27th, WM will be hosting a national colloquium on Minority Studies. The colloquium, which is a partnership between WM and the Future of Minority Studies Project (FMS) will bring together nationally recognized scholars and activists dedicated to Minority Studies on both a national and international level. The program will feature panels on Human Rights,… Read More
by Erin Zagursky | February 10, 2011 William & Mary junior John Pence signed up to study abroad in Egypt this semester because he was “ready for the next challenge.” “This was a challenge. I definitely learned a lot about myself, but it wasn’t the challenge I was expecting,” he said. Pence was one of hundreds… Read More
Japanese Section News: Professor Rachel DiNitto and student Teaching Assistant Pam Kennedy team up to provide a rich collaborative experience for students while producing a valuable web resource for Japanese scholars. **Video
Ahlan ya gamaa`! (Hello gang!) We are making progress on our Arabic textbook series. We have completed and tested 4 chapters of volume one, and are working and testing the next 4 chapters this semester. It has been bumpy at times, but we are confident that in the end the project will be a significant… Read More
Story by Leslie McCullough Luck, chance, or fate? Maybe some combination of the three. During a summer 2002 undergraduate research trip to South America, Sarah South Parks ’03 suggested an exploratory side trip to La Plata, Argentina. The rest is history. Sarah was finishing her junior year as a Hispanic Studies major and jumped at… Read More
by Megan Shearin There are more students enrolled in foreign language courses than any other department within the Arts & Sciences at William & Mary, making the College a leader in a nationwide trend that’s sweeping across higher education in America. According to the recent report, “Enrollments in Languages Other Than English in United States… Read More
‘Couture & Consensus: Fashion and Politics in Postcolonial Argentina’ by Regina A. Root Story By Lillian Stevens Couture & Consensus, a new book by Regina Root, offers a history of fashion and its influence on the political climate following Argentina’s revolution of independence in 1810. In her book, Root explains how dress served as a… Read More
By Erin Zagursky Over the past decade, William & Mary’s students and alumni have been very successful in obtaining Fulbright Scholarships to teach and study in countries around the world. This year alone, a record 13 students and alumni were selected. But the students who have obtained the highly competitive scholarships did not get there… Read More
Michael Leruth has been recognized for his outstanding dedication to his students and the university with the prestigious Plumeri award. This prize shows the great appreciation and support for his work from both his colleagues and the student body. Michael Leruth holds a Ph.D. in French from Penn State University (1995) and teaches courses and conducts research on… Read More